Pretty flamingo (?)

While many birds fly south for the winter, a flamingo has decided to make the theatre foyer its home for the next month. This is just one of several weird and wonderful creatures that will be making an appearance in ALICE IN A NON-PC WORLD, this year’s alternative panto for childish grown-ups. Some people have even asked if Denzil the Donkey is making a reappearance after his star turn last year (answer: no)!

We don’t stage a traditional family panto – with our friends at the Everyman so close and always making such a fantastic job of it (last year’s was voted ‘the best in the west’), there would be little point in trying to compete. Ours is not an ‘adult panto’ of the sort staged by Jim Davidson for some years but something silly, occasionally suggestive, occasionally politically incorrect, and ideal for those people who just want a good laugh in the run up to Christmas. It wouldn’t be suitable for children, but teenagers usually lap it up.

It always proves extremely popular, particularly with office parties, and on Thursday nights we don’t start the performance until 8.30 to make allowance for late night shopping. This year, ticket sales are up an incredible 60% on this time in 2007 and the final Saturday performance is rapidly approaching sell-out status! You’ll be able to read a bit more about ALICE in next week’s ‘Notes From…’

Notes from A Strange Kind of Hero

Each December, we are always pleased to welcome Jacob's Well Productions to the theatre. This year is something of a landmark for the group, members of whom come from churches across the Cheltenham area. Here, to tell us more about this year's show, is producer - and no, we don't mean director - Libby Wall:

"This is our tenth year at the Playhouse and so we thought we should mark the occasion with something memorable. We have chosen 'Paul: Strange Kind of Hero' as our musical. Last year's production 'Noah' (rather ironic given the circumstances of last summer but chosen before the floods, honest!) was a fun show full of colour, dance, humour and a whole bunch of animals. This year we decided to go in a completely different direction so we have gone for something which is strong and dramatic. It is the story of Saul, a fanatical murderer and persecutor of early Christians, who sees the light on the road to Damascus and becomes Paul, a passionate leader of the new church.

This musical, written by Sue Pomeroy and Chris Eaton, has been produced on the professional stage several times but this is the FIRST amateur production, so for our tenth year we have gone for.............a world premiere!!! This show was produced by Sue Pomeroy, in Cheltenham in 2001 and two of our company were in the chorus. It was put on in a big top at the racecourse, starting its run during the Greenbelt Festival and continuing afterwards with a total of 17 performances. Chris Eaton, who composed the music for the show, has written for many professional singers and this music is brilliant.

Anyone who has produced a show knows that it is at the same time an exciting and completely stressful experience!! As far as this show goes our two main problems have been the resources and the lead actor. When the show was produced by a professional company there was no printed score and the script has been altered many times which has meant that we have had to receive both of these in a 'drip feed' fashion, the last of which arrived last week!!! Four different actors agreed to take the lead role, one after the other, and then pulled out! It is obviously very frustrating for a director to try and run rehearsals without the main character. Having said this, we are sure that we have the right person now.

Our musicals always support a local charity and this one is in aid of St George's Association, a Cheltenham based charity which provides residential care and many other services for adults with learning disabilities. In order to boost these funds we held a Jacob's Well concert evening in the Playhouse Green Room in October. We had various acts ranging from a number from the show to a vocal duo who accompanied themselves on the guitar and the didgeridoo. I would recommend this type of event as it raised a good sum of money but required no company rehearsal time at all. Rehearsals are going well now and we do hope you can come along to see the finished production and support the charity."

PAUL: A STRANGE KIND OF HERO Weds 3 - Sat 6 December at 7.45 pm

Matinee on 6 December at 2.30 pm

Tickets £7 (Weds eve and Sat mat) otherwise £9

PS The shoes have been claimed!

Lost property

We don't get a lot of lost property at The Playhouse - occasionally a coat, but more usually an umbrella or pair of spectacles, the sorts of things that are small enough to be easily forgotten (and while the item is discovered missing the next day, it generally takes the best part of a week before people realise where they left it).

This morning we found something we've never had left behind before. There, in the front of house bar, a pair of men's black SHOES, neatly placed under a chair! We have to assume someone merely changed their footwear, as I can't believe someone would have walked home barefoot and not realised!

Last night's packed audience for Epsom Downs contained a lot of racegoers here for this weekend's Open meeting, so it is possible that the owner of the said shoes is unlikely to read this blog. Just in case they do, however, please give the box office a call on 01242 522852.

Children In Need Jazz Party

This coming Sunday, 16 November, our friends from Cheltenham Jazz Arts are hosting a Jazz Party in aid of Children In Need in the theatre Green Room. The event starts at 7.30 pm, everyone is welcome and admission is FREE! There will be plenty of live music and anyone can make a donation to either play or sing along with the band. In addition, there will be a ‘bring and buy’ second hand CD stall and the bar, of course, will be open! For more information, please contact Sara Espley on 07947 676112.

Another scary thing

Following Friday’s Hallowe’en special – which brought in another instance of a disembodied voice – I wanted to post a picture of what many people think is the scariest thing in the building (other than me). The lighting board.

It’s amazing how few people will go near this equipment. I don’t think it’s a question of being afraid of an electric shock, just an assumption that it will be extremely hard to get to grips with. In fact, operating the lighting board is the easy bit as, once programmed, each lighting cue is achieved simply by hitting the button marked ‘go’. It’s the programming that needs a little more knowledge, along with setting the lights themselves into position.

But it can be an awful lot of fun and very rewarding. The designer and/or operator are an extremely important part of the production team – without them, the show does not go on. Yet, so few people seem to want to undertake this side of things and, as a theatre, it is starting to become harder to find enough people to light all the shows during the year.

If there is anyone out there who would be interested in getting involved as one of our technical volunteers – whether you’re an existing member of the theatre or not – do please get in touch on 01242 522852. We can put you in touch with one of the regular ‘techies’ and put you through an apprenticeship!

Hallowe'en Hauntings

Hallowe’en has become much more ‘Americanised’ in the UK since I was a nipper, but as most theatres have resident ghosts, it’s probably in our interests to observe the festival – just to be on the safe side. We are supposed to have three – a man, a woman and a little girl – although they have never been seen at the same time and aren’t believed to be a family. The man has been seen in the rehearsal room known as the dungeon while the woman and little girl have only ever been seen in the auditorium as far as I am aware, with the woman usually seen on the sound balcony. She has, however, been seen at least once on stage during a performance, whispering in the ear of a musician in a band.

People do say that major building work in old premises like ours can disturb the spirits and increase the likelihood of ghostly activity. While this didn’t seem to happen here, there have been several slightly spooky goings-on over the last 12 months in the part of the theatre known as No 47, which consists of a ground floor committee room, an office and costume store on the first floor and a rehearsal room on the second floor. There is also access into the cellar.

Last summer, an electrical tester was working in the top rehearsal room and was convinced he was being watched. Every time he looked round, he saw nothing. He mentioned this to me afterwards while he was testing the wiring in the swimming pool area and said it was probably his mind playing tricks from hearing someone moving around the room below…except, of course, there was no one else in that part of the building at the time. Mary never left the box office and I was in the back alleyway spraying the weeds!

Last year, I was in the office in No 47 and thought I heard my name being called by a woman’s voice. I guessed it was merely noise from outside or next door, until I heard it a second and third time. I went down the stairs, assuming it was Mary. Perhaps the intercom between the box office and admin office wasn’t working, so she’d had to come across and find me? No, the intercom was working and Mary had again never left the box office and had actually been on the phone for some time. Added to that, only a fortnight ago, I heard the sound of chairs being moved around in the committee room beneath the office several times over the course of a morning – on every visit downstairs, there was no sign of anything having been moved and no one else around.

Were these all noises from outside merely sounding as if they were coming from within the theatre, or genuinely ghostly goings-on? Happy Hallowe’en!

Notes from Epsom Downs

We now go over to the racecourse and a commentary on the soon-to-be-run Epsom Downs – not from Sir Peter O’Sullevan but the play’s director, Steven Rayworth:

“And as we approach the final two furlongs…

Yes, indeed, Deep End Theatre Company’s production of Epsom Downs is just two weeks away and you bloggers out there may just like to know how it’s going.

Howard Brenton’s play is a theatrical treat. It is also a bit of a challenge: the staging of a day at the Derby in Silver Jubilee year. Forty-odd characters converge on the downs for the great day. Originally, as performed by Joint Stock Theatre, the company comprised nine actors with multiple role-playing in the true Brechtian style. Here, I’ve expanded it to 22 actors with some multi-various role-playing. The result, I think, is a theatrical entertainment of sustained variety throughout. By opening out the play in order to absorb more actors, I’ve been able to achieve an age range appropriate to the idea that Derby Day (and, indeed, racing in general) is for everyone.

Mike Kingston has designed the set that will convey the undulations of the Downs; he has also assured me that the special effects which I imagined difficult won’t be! Martin Oakes is gearing up on the lighting and sound front and there are already a couple of effects planned which will add a frisson of verisimilitude to the production.

Forty-odd characters to contend with has meant some pre-occupation with costumes: some easy to get hold of, others less so. Liz White is on board to help although many of the cast have been rooting amongst their own clobber. One way or another, the play will look colourful – as Derby Day should.

And what of the actors? Some I knew beforehand, others I have encountered for the first time. Some of them are acting out of their skins! We have been able to move forward considerably with the play because much line-learning has been done prior to rehearsals and what a boon that is! And oh boy, have we had a laugh!

Epsom Downs is both extremely funny and poignant; there are a number of personal stories to follow throughout the play and a rich revelation of character along with identifiable social types. I defy you not to have a good time when you see this marvellous play. Howard Brenton can be regarded as a political playwright of some renown and Epsom Downs is, arguably, his most accessible play. I’m enjoying it as much as I’ve ever done. Rehearsals have confirmed that you can have a laugh (my number one aim) and be creative. At the time of writing this blogette, the ‘vibe’ is extremely positive and a feeling that we’re close to doing this play justice.

Oh, and I have deliberately not mentioned the company’s research trip to Cheltenham Races on 18 October (courtesy of Edward Gillespie – a BIG thank you). My wallet is still reverberating from the pounding of losing bets it received…”

EPSOM DOWNS 12 – 15 November at 7.45 pm
Tickets £9 (£6 concessions except Saturday)